


Touch of Princes

by careaphite



Category: Dream SMP - Fandom, Dream Was Taken - Fandom, George Not Found - Fandom, Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Adventure, Angst, Conflict, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Escape, Fluff, Forbidden Love, Friends to Lovers, Gay, Internal Conflict, Jealousy, Kinda enemies to lovers ok a little, Knight Clay | Dream (Video Blogging RPF), M/M, Medieval AU, Mutual Pining, Pining, Prince George - Freeform, Prince GeorgeNotFound (Video Blogging RPF), Protective Dream, Secret Crush, Slow Burn, Suppressed Feelings, Traumatic Life, knight dream, like slow burn yall im warning you
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-29
Updated: 2021-01-11
Packaged: 2021-03-10 17:27:54
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,150
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28280883
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/careaphite/pseuds/careaphite
Summary: George has always lived a normal life as a prince, Dream has always lived a normal life as a poor farm boy. But their paths collide when turmoil erupts in the kingdom and Dream is forced to become George's sworn protector, to both of their dismay. Things change quickly and they find themselves in a relationship they had never expected.
Relationships: Clay | Dream/GeorgeNotFound (Video Blogging RPF)
Comments: 22
Kudos: 62





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> Medieval AU brain rot has pushed me to make my own fic. I will definitely add tags and possibly change the rating, who knows because I have zero plan for this, I'm just writing what comes to mind. This is slow burn, I repeat SLOW BURN, so this chapter mostly just focuses on establishing George. I'm sorry if it's super boring but bare with me. This fic is definitely inspired by a lot of fanarts, so I might mention some twitter users at some point to give y'all an idea of the vibes. Also, as of right now, the only dsmp members in the fic are Dream and George. We shall see if i come up with any ways to incorporate others in the future. I don't feel lik proof-reading so if there are grammar issued or plot holes don't whine lol.

George sat impatiently at the end of his bed, staring out the window at the blue sky just above the bustling city. He sighed quietly, looking around his room. It was fairly quiet, his bed sheets tussled behind him and the fireplace crackling lightly. It was springtime outside, just beginning to warm up. But that didn’t mean the bite of the night air wouldn’t get George if he had no fire. He finally heard a gentle knock at his door, prompting him to get up and open it himself. His keeper looked surprised as George stood in the doorway looking at her.

“You’re awake already, my grace?” She questioned to George. He stepped aside to allow her to enter the room, “You’re usually a late sleeper. Are you nervous for today?” She asked over her shoulder as she placed his hefty breakfast on his table.

“Well, yes, I suppose I am,” George moved over to the table and began to eat while his keeper shuffled through his wardrobe in search of his outing clothes. “Miriam,” George spoke in between bites of a scone, “Why does my mother insist I come along today?”

She hummed to herself before replying, “I assume it’s because you’re her son, and her and your father value your opinion.” George rolled his eyes slightly, placing down the scone. He didn’t have much of an appetite. “Come here, George.” She called over her shoulder. He begrudgingly moved over and took the stack of clothes out of her hands, then moved behind the partition and began to change. He pulled on the loose shirt and tucked it into his pants, pulling another shirt atop that one and then a shawl with gold embroidery along the edges. It was very regal, but simple enough to go out in. He stepped out from behind the partition and took his boots from under his bed. He glanced over at Miriam in time to see her puff out some air in a distressed manner at his unorderliness. He chuckled slightly and proceeded out of the room. “You’re leaving already?” She questioned as she hustled to catch up with him.

“If mother and father are as efficient as I am at getting ready, then yes. I want to get this over with so I can practice archery later.” He continued walking down the corridors with Miriam on his tail until they reached the main hallway of the castle. His father was standing to one side, talking with one of his men. He turned to see George waiting across the hall, and bid farewell to his friend. 

“Ready to leave already, George?” His father stepped in front of George. He was a tall man, with a slim physique and groomed beard. George nodded and smiled, trying to be positive. “Well then, let’s go find the carriage.”

“Where’s mum?” George asked as he followed behind his father.

“She won’t be coming today, George. Claims this matter ‘doesn’t concern a woman.’” George sighed and continued following his father until they were safe in their royal carriage. 

The day was quite boring to start off. They were riding around the city and surrounding farms looking for young men to enlist in the knights guard. It was quite sad, George thought, watching parents receive a letter that their boy was going to be taken away. George didn’t like to acknowledge it, but the political climate of the kingdom was quite unstable, and enlisting men before it was too late was quite important. George sat with his head resting in his palm as he looked out at the rolling hills of the countryside. He was quite bored, to be honest, and wished to get home quickly. The carriage pulled to a stop in front of a quaint farmhouse. The sky had become cloudier as the day had progressed, and the farm looked mildly ominous as a fog drifted over the fields. George stayed looking out the window as their driver stepped down and headed for the front door of the home, holding a small scroll. A small woman opened the door and took the scroll gently. 

George’s attention was pulled away by movement at the side of the house. He glanced over to see a person stepping out of the side door of the house and heading for the barn. The man looked over, a bit surprised, at the royal carriage. He paused in his tracks, squinting over at George. George sat up from his position, leaning forward to look back at the man. The farm boy ran a hand through his dirty blonde hair, glancing over at the horses pulling the carriage and back towards the window George was looking through. They stared at each other for another moment, George not sure if he could actually see him through the glass pane. The boy finally reached down and picked up his pail again, heading out into the mist. He glanced back one more time, then disappeared. 

The rest of the day was uneventful, and by the time they returned back to the castle, it was almost time for dinner. George went to his room to freshen up before the meal, looking out his window pensively as the sun slowly moved lower in the sky. He walked to dinner silently, sitting in his chair at the table and quickly being served. His mother and father both sat on ends of the table, eating quietly. George followed suit, eating the carefully made food mindlessly. 

“George,” his mother piped up after clearing her throat. He glanced up from his food, “You’re about to turn twenty, and your father and I decided we think it’s time for you to have a personal guard. We know that you’re perfectly capable-”

“Personal guard?” George interrupted, feeling suddenly frustrated by the proposal.

“I- yes. We think it be a good time, with what’s happening in the kingdom and whatnot.” Her lips were pursed and she was avoiding eye contact with George.

He sneered, placing his fork down, “You think that I’m unsafe on my own? Why wouldn’t you tell me this? Why are you just springing it upon me that I might  _ die  _ all of a sudden?”

His father stepped into the conversation, “George, please. We said nothing of the sort, We just want to be extra precautious.”

“Besides!” George interrupted again, “I don’t need some knight watching my every move. I can fend for myself just fine.” George felt his head fuming as his cheeks flushed.

“Of course you can, son, we just want to be safe,” George’s father replied, remaining calm despite the prince’s temper. 

“Whatever,” George spoke softly. He rose from the table without asking to be excused and grabbed an apple before leaving to his room. 

He closed and locked the door behind him, plopping down in his window seat and glaring out at the night sky. The candles in his room cast an orange dancing light across the walls. He was still quite hungry, but he wasn’t going to give his parents the satisfaction of staying and eating after their fight. He bit into his apple bitterly, continuing to gaze out of the window. His thoughts were racing. Yes, he was angry at his parents for assuming he was weak and needed protection. But he was more angry at the thought that they were all potentially in danger, and didn’t decide to tell him until now. He sighed slightly and grabbed a book off his floor, pulling it up to his chest and getting comfortable. 

Before he could open it, the noise of horses floated up to his window. He looked down eagerly at the arrivals. It was a castle wagon, with a covering over the back. The coach stepped down and walked around to the back, pulling up the cover and stepping aside. First to leave was a short boy, who looked just over 17. His eyes looked wide, and his cheeks were taught. He was… scared. George quickly deduced that these were the new arrivals of the knight apprentices, as several other boys and young men clambered out of the back of the wagon. George continued watching, fascinated to see all the new faces. 

  
One caught his eye right away: tall and muscular, a confident and stern look on his face. He glanced around before beginning to file after the others, bag slung over his shoulder. It was the boy from the farm George had seen earlier that day.  _ They rounded them up quickly _ . George thought to himself as they disappeared into the lower level of the castle where they were going to live. George looked back into his room at the crackling fire. The more he thought about it, the more unsettled he became. There was a reason these boys were getting brought in so quickly in such numbers. Something bad was happening in the kingdom, and George’s parents hadn’t even cared to tell him. 


	2. Chapter Two

George got up early again, as he had for the past week or two, looking out at the dark morning. The sun was just barely below the horizon, casting an orange hue across the eastern sky. Otherwise, it was dark, torches flickering faintly along the walls of the castle. George perched in his window and looked down at the city beyond the castle walls. Some windows were slightly lit, and fog drifted over the empty streets. George exhaled deeply, staring as his breath fogged up the window. The sun would come up in maybe half an hour, but George decided he wouldn’t be able to catch another wink and got dressed for the day. He put on the most casual clothes he had, which his parents didn’t know he owned. They were ragged from wearing them about so often, as George had gotten them in town for when he wanted to go out alone and not be recognized. 

He crept out of his room, walking silently down the candlelit halls. The castle was mostly quiet, aside from some of the servants who had to attend to especially early duties. George remained unnoticed with his hood up, and slipped out of an inconspicuous door into the grounds of the castle. He began to walk west, toward the woods, where he could go on a walk in the brisk morning air. He wandered out into the dark forest, no fear that would inhibit any sane person crossing his mind. He had walked these woods an infinite number of times, and could navigate them perfectly well in the low dawn light. The sky slowly turned a grey blue as he continued to wander through the quiet trees. 

George walked for a while alone in the silence, looking around at the animals rising for the day and looking up at the tops of the trees. He paused when he heard a noise to his right. It was not an animal noise, which is why it raised an alarm. He paused in his tracks, lowering his hood slowly and checking his belt to make sure he had brought his knife. It was tucked securely into its holster, but George grabbed the sturdy handle and began pulling it out slowly, turning in a small circle to try and locate the source of the sound. George heard a noise again, and lept around the side of a tree. 

Before he could get a good look at the figure, and before he could even pull his knife out in self defense, George found himself pinned against the tree, a heavy forearm placed on his throat. He gasped as the wind returned to his lungs, and tried to reach for his knife again. But his attacker called his attention first, yanking his own hood off to reveal his dirty blonde hair and chiseled face. George paused as they made eye contact, immediately recognizing the boy as one of the new knight recruits. 

“Who are you!” The taller boy spoke through clenched teeth. 

“I’m not a threat! I swear!” George replied quickly, holding his arms up innocently. The larger boy released lightly from George's throat, but still had a firm hold on George. The blonde boy looked at George with a puzzled gaze, tilting his head as he saw George’s muddied clothes. Then, he released altogether. George stumbled a bit, surprised at the sudden freedom, but composed himself and returned to looking at the other boy confidently. 

“I’m sorry, I- you scared me.” The blonde boy remarked, shoulders relaxing slightly. 

“Yeah, same here,” George forced a chuckle. He didn’t recognize George at all, which was good, George supposed. The other boy looked around, a bit concerned, not fully trusting George yet.

“Well, the question still stands. Who are you? No, actually, what are you doing out here?” The boy returned his gaze to George, stern and steady.

“Oh, I- I was just walking, I suppose. I don’t usually come across people out here.” George was still a bit flustered, and shaken, after their violent first encounter. He could get this boy in a lot of trouble for being out of the walls without permission, but George knew that he would have to explain why he was also out of the walls without permission, so he decided not to tell the knight who he actually was. 

“Oh,” the blonde boy paused, looking around a bit frantically. He must’ve noticed that he was in trouble the moment George did, as the air immediately became even tenser around both of them. “Are you from the castle?” He asked as calmly as he could.

“Me? No, no. I’m just, just from town,” George was a terrible liar, but the other boy didn’t know him well enough to tell yet.

“I see. Well, I should be off.” he began to walk away from George, back toward the castle. George was quite confused and flustered by the whole situation, but he saw that the sun was beginning to touch the horizon, and decided to head back as well. He moved in the direction of town until the other boy was out of sight, and then veered back toward the castle.

George was back in his room by the time Miriam came to wake him up, looking as innocent as ever. “Eat up, George,” she spoke as she placed his breakfast down at his table, “Your father wants you downstairs by seven.” George had already eaten while he was out walking, so he just pushed the plate away as if he didn’t feel well.

“Father wants to see me again? What could he have planned two days in a row?” George asked annoyedly. His father had been putting him up to all sorts of tasks for the past few weeks, probably to distract him. But George didn’t ask questions. 

“When you’re king, you’ll have to attend to things every waking moment, your grace. I wouldn’t complain about a few days of duties.”

“Don’t remind me,” George sighed. 

He was down to the throne room long before seven, leaning against the wall in a dark corner as he watched his father discuss matters with several of his men from atop his throne. They talked for only a few minutes longer before his father dismissed the men.

“George, come here,” his father called out across the dimly lit throne room. George crept out from the shadows to stand in front of his father. “I want you to be by my side while we go out and watch the knights train. I know it upset you a few days ago, but I’m hoping after some time you’ve come to terms with the idea of a personal guard,” His father paused, waiting for a rude reaction out of George. When none came, he proceeded, “I want you to monitor their progress and make sure they are as efficient as possible. We’ll start today and go check on their training together.” George could tell that nothing his father had stated was any sort of offer, but rather just informing George of what was inevitable, so he simply nodded.

They walked across the castle with determination, finally arriving at the knight’s quarters. His father opened the doors to the courtyard and they stepped out into the morning light. The sounds of metal clashing and heavy breathing rang out in the air as the new knights practiced fighting in the yard. They were all paired up, clambering about with their heavy swords and shields. They were all clad in similar chainmail armor, and George found it very fascinating to watch the boy’s struggle and, occasionally, triumph as they fought each other. But George had his eyes open for someone in particular; that farm boy that he just kept running into. 

His eyes finally graced upon the other boy’s muscular form, fighting his opponent elegantly and with what seemed to be ease. George couldn’t take his eyes away as the boy dodged and attacked with such an air that George was at a loss for words. George supposed that that explained his muscular build, but how on Earth would a farm boy end up with this much skill at swordsmanship? Surely he hadn’t progressed this significantly in the little time he’d been training at the castle. The blonde boy finally defeated his opponent, dropping his sword to his side as soon as he would have issued the fatal blow in a real battle. The boy he was fighting was on his butt, leaning up on his elbows. He looked up at the blonde boy and chuckled, shaking his head lightly. He then took the blonde’s hand as he got hoisted up. As he began to readjust for round two, he spotted George and the king wandering through the lines of boys, and caught George’s constant gaze. George looked away hurriedly, trying to catch up to his father.

The blonde turned as well to see where his friend’s eyes had suddenly wandered to. He caught sight of George and turned his body slightly so that he could fully see George. He became flustered when he recognized George, eyes growing wide. George looked away and blushed slightly as their eyes fell upon him and followed him. They were close enough that George could hear what they were saying, so he listened in intently.

The blonde shook his shaggy hair out of his face, running his fingers through the sandy locks as he continued to watch George wander by. “Who is that?” He turned and asked his friend. 

“Really?” His friend chuckled in surprise. But the smile faded when he realized the blonde seriously didn’t know who George was. “That’s the prince. Heir to the throne and all that shit,” George blushed as the boys talked about him, unused to having anyone his age interact with him, even if it was behind his back. He was also unused to their profanity. He had only ever heard it behind closed doors as servants had casual conversations, but his parents made sure he never picked up on any foul mouthing. 

“Shit…” The blonde mumbled under his breath, turning back to face his opponent. 

“What, do you have a bad past with him or something.” The other boy chuckled, continuing to glance at George.

“Let’s go again,” the blonde replied quickly, throwing his sword down just in time for his opponent to block, stumbling backward in surprise.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for reading i really hope everyone is enjoying so far! i didn’t really like this chapter ugh. i will try to update every 1 to 2 weeks ideally. i really hope i continue to work on this but i have a terrible habit of not finishing projects but i love receiving kudos and comments they motivate me sm:)) thank you all


	3. Chapter Three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i made a moodboard type thing that you can check out here:  
> https://docs.google.com/document/d/1HkvVQQVfA9NHrFl2HwzxG8woYF_PMEs-yasuX4UCM_w/edit?usp=sharing  
> this is a bit of a shorter chapter so sorry about that but i hope you enjoy!  
> thank you all so much for the comments and kudos they mean so much to me:))

It was another week or so before George decided to return to the forest. After his last experience, he wasn’t very keen on going back. Especially after what happened in the training yard. His father had insisted on George going to watch again, but George had convinced his father he had come down with a common cold and it wouldn’t be wise to let him infect their whole army. George woke early, even earlier than he had the last time he went out. He pulled on his dirty outing clothes and threw up the hood, wandering out the same side door and into the quiet forest. George’s senses were on high alert this time, though, looking out for any outline of a person or any particularly heavy footsteps that had no chance of being an animal. After a while of walking with nothing suspicious coming up, George pulled out an apple and took a crisp bite out of the side. 

Suddenly, he was jerked to his right by something tugging on his arm. George found himself face-to-face with his blonde friend, if that’s what they could consider themselves.

“We keep running into each other.” The boy said through his teeth, a hint of anger in his voice. He released George’s arm aggressively, glaring down at George’s ratty clothes. George immediately recognized the difference from last time; then, his dirtied clothes had compelled the taller boy to be more kind to George. Now, they reminded him how George was putting them on for show.

“What do you want,” George replied, attempting to match the boy's angry tone. He watched as the boy scanned George’s face, eyebrows furrowing. 

“Why didn’t you tell them? Why didn’t you get me kicked out of this place, or whatever happens to rule breakers? I know you know the rules. I can’t leave castle grounds unless I’m issued permission. So, why didn’t you tell them?” His tone was even, but stern. He glared down at George with piercing green eyes, not daring to glance away and show weakness.

George processed the words for a moment, choosing his response carefully. He looked down at his apple, twisting it in his hand a bit. “I don’t know,” George tried to reply as confidently as he could, but his tone faltered for an instant. 

The blonde haired boy bit at the opportunity, snarling back, “No, please do inform me,  _ your grace. _ ” George’s jaw clenched at the backhanded phrasing the boy used, glaring up at him intensely. George wasn’t sure why the other boy was so angry, but his flaming temper was setting off a spark in George, too.

“Maybe it’s because I’m a good prince, and I understand that it’s good to get out every once in a while,” George paused, realizing how stupid he sounded. But his words had worked, as the taller boy’s face lifted in the tiniest bit. “Why are you so angry, anyway? You should be grateful I didn’t turn you in,” George immediately regretted his word choice, as the other boy’s eyebrows furrowed again.

“You lied to me. I don’t know why you’re out here, or what your motives are, but you tricked me. I don’t like liars,” His face remained stoic.

“You’re awfully confident, talking to your prince the way you do,” George replied. He grimaced as the blonde scoffed and looked him up and down. He was still trying his best to be as confident as the blonde, but he was failing. He was quite baffled by the whole interaction, unsure of where the conversation was leading. But, he had the upper hand, at least he felt as though he did. ”Have you been coming out here every day to try and confront me?” George spoke. The boy’s eyes narrowed, but he didn’t reply. George chuckled slightly to himself. “Why are you so angry I’m the prince, anyways?” He watched as many emotions crossed the taller boy’s face. He looked down at his hands, and then back up at George. The other boy’s expression softened as he appeared to come to a realization.

“You’re not allowed to be out here either,” he spoke very quietly, as if he were just trying to reassure himself. But George was caught off guard, realizing the playing field was much more even then he would like it to be. “That’s why you have those clothes on, that’s why you told me you wer from town. You didn’t tell, because you can’t be out here either,” The blonde looked back up at George, a sly smirk across his lips. George grimaced at the expression, feeling defeated. They stared at each other for a long moment, waiting for someone to say something, waiting for one of them to grab for the advantage. Instead, th taller boy just began to turn away. George leaned forward, trying to speak again, but nothing came out. 

  
The blonde turned around one more time, meeting George’s eyes, “Thank you for your time,  _ your grace. _ ” He smiled and then was gone, jogging off back toward the castle. George’s fist clenched as he watched until the blonde disappeared. He turned and cursed to himself, pacing around through the brush of the forest. He was entirely confused by his interactions with this strange knight, but also intrigued. He had never met someone so brash, so confident, and he was transfixed. He hated the way that he wanted to know everything about him but also never see him again. George bit his lip and stood for one more moment before returning to the castle. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i really didn't like this chapter but i'm so excited to get into the more exciting parts of the story. please leave thoughts in the comments because this plot is loosely planned so i would love ideas!


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